Who is Jon Ossoff, the senator who took on the White House and is now the 'dark horse' candidate for 2028, according to betting markets

Many high-profile Democrats are in the running for the "2028 candidate" spot. Former Vice President Kamala Harris, Governor Gavin Newsom, former rising political star Pete Buttigieg, and far-left Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are cited in national polls as the top favorites to lead the Democratic Party ahead of the upcoming presidential election. However, even though they have been leading in the polls for some time, none of them stands out or fully convinces voters because, despite their track records, each carries their own political scars and failures that make them candidates who cannot be fully trusted. That was the Democrats' mistake in 2016, with Hillary Clinton, and in 2024, with Joe Biden, who fell by the wayside as time went on following a 2020 election he won largely thanks to the pandemic and the harmful impact it had on the lives of Americans. But, against all odds, there is one name that seems to be breaking away from the vices of the past and is beginning to gain traction in the betting markets: young Senator Jon Ossoff.

Ossoff, 39, had never held public office before entering politics. The Democrat, a native of Atlanta, attended a private high school in the city's suburbs and then earned his undergraduate degree at Georgetown University, followed by a master's degree from the London School of Economics. Before joining the Senate, he focused primarily on producing investigative videos on corruption and human rights abuses in Africa and the Middle East. He entered politics in 2017, when, at age 30, he ran in a special election for a congressional seat in the Atlanta suburbs; he lost, but the campaign established him as a rising star within the Democratic Party. In 2021, alongside Reverend Raphael Warnock, he won a Senate runoff election that gave his party a narrow majority in the Senate, making him the youngest senator elected since 1980.

In recent months, Ossoff has deliberately stepped out of the shadows to challenge, criticize, and at times hound President Donald Trump and the White House, earning a reputation as one of the Democrats most critical of Trump II. His attacks have been constant and, to some, bold.

"Accountability is coming," Ossoff said from Divine Faith Ministries International (DFMI) in Georgia, an unconventional megachurch. "Scripture is full of wicked kings brought low by their own arrogance."

On another occasion, back in April, he took aim at the Trumps in general by linking them to inflation: "While you pay more for everything, the first family's wealth is growing by billions of dollars—because they're crooks, and everybody knows it." He also linked the White House to the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who at the time was a controversial and damaging issue for the Trump administration: "This is the Epstein class ruling our country."

All these statements, which generated headlines, praise, criticism, disputes, and, of course, donations, come as Ossoff faces a Senate reelection campaign in the swing state of Georgia, against Republican Representative Mike Collins, who, according to polls, trails the Democratic incumbent by between ten and seventeen points.

But Ossoff, knowing he is the favorite, has devoted little to no time to the Senate campaign, focusing his rallies, public appearances, and attention on the highest political stage: a battle with Trump and the White House. According to several Republican strategists cited by The Wall Street Journal, this strategy is a sort of "audition" for 2028, which is already gaining momentum for the young senator in the betting market.

Although Ossoff does not yet appear as a potential candidate in The New York Times' national polls, the senator has risen ten points on Polymarket, reaching a 14% probability of becoming the Democratic nominee for 2028. That's double Kamala Harris's (7%) and puts him just behind Gavin Newsom (15%) and AOC (18%).

This rise in Polymarket's poll also coincides with a series of favorable headlines for Ossoff, who in recent weeks has seen Newsweek publish a profile of his wife, Dr. Alisha Kramer, and veteran reporter Edward Helmore feature him in The Observer as the political figure who can bridge the gap between the Democrats' most radical progressive wing and their more moderate wing. Helmore's article was full of praise, as this passage shows:

Together, these elements are shaping a candidacy simmering in the background while the Democrats face a glaring leadership crisis. Kamala Harris, who is already burdened by a massive political failure, has not made a positive impact in her return to politics after losing to Trump in 2024. In fact, the headlines about "word salad"—which did her so much harm in the last election campaign—have returned. Newsom failed to gain traction despite stepping onto the national stage and still has a poor track record in governing California, where large and medium-sized companies, millionaires, and ordinary citizens alike are fleeing the tax hell, the security crisis, and the high cost of living. AOC, with her history of extremism, faces the difficult task of shifting her niche profile to become a serious national candidate, where she'll have to win over moderate and conservative Democratic voters in Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, and many other swing states. Even if she tries, the task is remarkably complicated. There, Ossoff has a wide window of opportunity, though it may narrow if he makes mistakes.

The controversial remark against Natalie Harp

A few days ago, Ossoff appeared to make a suggestive remark, to say the least, against Natalie Harp, a White House aide who drafts the president's posts on Truth Social while Trump dictates them. Ossoff, raising questions about international policy, highlighted Harp's closeness to the president. Some interpreted this as a sexist attack.

"While the sailors on the Lincoln fight his war, while he fruitlessly drains our munitions and oil reserves, the president sleeps through his meetings. He golfs and trades stocks," Ossoff said. "So, he doesn't want to do the job. He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the Emir of Qatar."

The provocative comment partly achieved its goal. The White House, his electoral rival Mike Collins, and his critics fiercely challenged him. That's not surprising, but what is surprising is the reaction from Democratic strategist David Axelrod, a key figure for former President Barack Obama during his two terms in office.

"The paragraph from his weekend speech that has gotten so much attention was a brutal takedown," Axelrod said on X. "But two words in it, 'with Natalie,' seemed gratuitous and unnecessary."

Axelrod's remarks echoed, to some extent, the criticism Collins directed at Fox News: "It's disgusting that he would attack a young female staffer just to score cheap political points with his radical activist base. It's unbecoming of a U.S. senator, and the fact prominent Democrats are starting to call him out just proves it."

Despite the backlash, Ossoff seemed to relish the attention and the White House's response, which labeled the Democrat a "cringeworthy feminine theatre kid cosplaying as Barack Obama."

"It's been amazing to watch this White House melt down over this all week," Ossoff said, dodging the question about sexism during an interview with MS Now. "And about Natalie Harp, these White House staffers are adults, public officials paid by the taxpayers with immense power in positions of public trust."

Perhaps this controversy is exactly what Ossoff was looking for: to infuriate the White House, gain momentum, and throw himself headfirst into the national battle. Basically, to raise his profile. But that strategy could backfire, some Republican strategists warned the WSJ, even noting that the comments about Harp, in turn, open a small window of opportunity for Collins and her campaign.

"[He] probably had this race won until he started running for the wrong office. Picking fights with female White House staffers isn't a Senate strategy. It's a 2028 audition tape," Chip Lake, a longtime Republican strategist in Georgia, said.

Katie Frost, another Republican strategist, told the WSJ that Ossoff "is trying to step into the center ring and spar with one of the best political counterpunchers of all time. It's a bold move, let's see how it works out for him."

In addition to his meteoric rise, money is also flowing Ossoff's way. As of June 30, the young senator's campaign had raised about $98 million this cycle, including $77.3 million since the beginning of 2025. With the latest headlines, it's more than plausible that those numbers will increase and keep rising after the midterms if Collins fails to bounce back and put up a fight.